West Bay Opera
Elspeth Franks
British-born lyric mezzo Elspeth Franks is one of the West Coast's
busiest young singers. She has previously been heard by West Bay Opera
audiences as Meg Page in Falstaff, Isolier in Count Ory,
Mrs. Grose in The Turn of the Screw,
the Secretary in The Consul, and Suzuki in Madama Butterfly.
A popular and noted exponent of the "trouser role" repertoire, Ms. Franks
includes in her extensive repertoire such roles as Cherubino, Hansel,
Octavian, Siebel in Faust,
Sesto Pompeo in Handel's Giulio Cesare,,
Nerone in Agrippina,, the title role in Teseo,
Lazuli in Chabrier's L'Étoile, Prince Rafael in Offenbach's
The Princess of Trebizond, Cupid in Orpheus in the Underworld,
Orestes in La belle Hélène, Don Ettore in
Haydn's La canterina, and Prince Orlofsky in her
extensive repertoire. Previous engagements have included
Berkeley Opera (Countess Eberbach in Der Wildschütz and
Orlofsky);
the Bear Valley Music Festival (Cherubino, Orlofsky and Berta); the San
Luis Obispo Mozart Festival (Cherubino); the West Marin Music Festival
(Ernesto in Haydn's Il mondo della luna); Rogue Opera in Oregon
as Orlofsky and Suzuki; Rimrock Opera in Montana as Suzuki; various
roles with Pocket Opera; and principal roles with the
Lamplighters Music Theatre.
As a Young Artist with Florida Grand Opera,
Ms. Franks was heard as Bianca in The Rape of Lucretia,
the Aunt in Madama Butterfly, and Mrs. Nolan in The Medium.
February 2001 marked her debut as a soloist with
Philharmonia Baroque and Berkeley Symphony under the batons of Nicholas
McGegan and Kent Nagano, and in March she made her New York debut as
Commere in Virgil Thomson's Four Saints in Three Acts with the
Mark Morris Dance Group.
Ms. Franks studied voice at the Royal Northern College of Music in
Manchester, England,
and as a Rotary Foundation Scholar at the University of Michigan.
Now a resident of San Francisco, she maintains a busy schedule in
many facets of the music world.
Solo concert appearances in California have included Bach's B minor Mass with
the Sacramento Chamber Orchestra, and Handel's Messiah with the Fresno
Philharmonic.
Ms. Franks has also presented various solo recitals
throughout Great Britain and the U.S., featuring music by contemporary British,
American, and French composers.
Recent performances include Bruckner's Requiem in D minor at
St Dominic's Church in San Francisco.
Her upcoming performances include the B minor Mass with The Rogue Valley
Chorale, Cherubino with Pocket Opera, and concert performances of
Der Rosenkavalier in the role of Octavian with Oakland Lyric Opera.
28 Apr 2001
